Who were you???

I have no memories of any times before my current life. Of course, I have no absolute memories of being a toddler living in the isolated thumb of Michigan either, but I know I was there. I tend to hope reincarnation would be like that. Just because I can't remember it doesn't mean it isn't something I've experienced. I have a hard time dealing with that idea. I lost my mother ten years back and had a total crisis of being. I was trying to explain this to my mate a few weeks back. We were speaking of god and faith and things of that nature and he was telling me that losing my mom shouldn't have jarred those things. I tried to explain to him that what bothered me --what ultimately made me too thoughtful for my own good-- was seeing the difference from the last moments of my mother's life to the moments directly after. There was an absolute difference between living and dead. I went down that line of thought where you try and imagine what it would be like to cease to exist. For a long time the very thought would drive me into a panic attack. I had to stop doing that and try and remember all the things that used to make me so happy about life and the mysteries associated with it.

So this ended up with me having countless conversations with my father about the topic of reincarnation. It was sort of weird. My mother was a minister and he was a nihilist, so as I grew up (with a sci-fi big brother feeding me far more interesting stuff in-between) he often countered anything my mother offered me. After losing his second wife he became far more thoughtful on the subject of what makes us us. He got pretty into the topic of reincarnation and often sent me articles about it --I think trying to validate it by having his previously eccentric -believe everything- daughter tell him it was all true. Then one day he told me he had this feeling I must have been much as I am now in some previous life. I asked him why -he said because I was drawing before I was formally speaking. I like that idea, even if I have no such memory of it.

This is sort of all over the place on the subject, for that I apologize. I've been reading this website for a few years now and keep meaning to make an account but never do. The other night I was reading this thread and it led me to creative writing for the better part of the night. I thought it would be a nice moment to actually go through the process of trying to join a conversation. I have a habit of just watching. Wonderful topic though. I've enjoyed reading some of your stories.

I feel humanitys pain.
I believe I have been here before, as I have always felt out of place.
I always have dreams with me as someone else.

Good post, got a few of us thinking huh...

Shaunypoos.

It's a beautiful concept when you actually know of your past lives as I documented and linked to mine a few posts back. To me it lets me know that life DOES go on after death. Makes me not as scared and that means more than anything, in my personal opinion and belief.

I called a psychic hotline once when I was about 14, this was in like 1994. They told me I was younger than I said I was, i had recently dyed my hair a lighter color, and that in a previous life I was responsible for sending people to their deaths.

They might have said other things, but those stuck with me over the years because I was younger than I said I was, I had dyed my hair maybe that day or the day before, and well who wants to hear the last part.

I dont know who I was but if I had to believe
I was someone before now I'd say I was

somebody who stood for a very long time trapped in a lightless cell.
I need sun space sky and stars more than anything else.

reply to post by zbeliever



im brand new!

Very nice thread,
I have always though I have been alive before, I’m only 26 years old, I mentioned this to my dad he just looked at me funny.
Well here we go,
I have vague memories of smoky dark rooms, old tables, and old leather chairs, trench coats, rainy weather and the smell of cigars. Really weird, never in my 26 years have I ever been in that environment.
Can being hypnotised can bring more out? I’m curious as to where these memories have come from.

jay

reply to post by hapablab


Wow, Mrs. Sinatra good post... Have you had children since his death ?If so can they sing?

reply to post by zbeliever


That's called imagination. I started inventing characters in my head and associating with them very young as well. Today I have a couple that linger still from back there. As time goes on their stories grow more complex and vivid and merge together.

Recrimination is also illogical because if you live only to be a half remembered dream in the next life, then really it doesn't matter. Eat drink and be merry, for tomorrow you die, only to be a blurred memory of one who steals your soul.

EttaDiem,
Welcome! Glad you joined.
Sarra,
It interesting with the pictures....I definitely see the simulates...
Ottotheb,
I have heard hypnosis works ,but I don't know first hand...

I scanned all 7 pages of posts and didn't see anyone post this. I think it's pertinent to the topic at hand. Again VERY sorry if someone did post this and I overlooked it. Most of you have probably read it, for those of you who haven't.....enjoy.


"The Egg"by Andy Weir

You were on your way home when you died.
It was a car accident. Nothing particularly remarkable, but fatal nonetheless. You left behind a wife and two children. It was a painless death. The EMTs tried their best to save you, but to no avail. Your body was so utterly shattered you were better off, trust me.
And that’s when you met me.
“What… what happened?” You asked. “Where am I?”
“You died,” I said, matter-of-factly. No point in mincing words.
“There was a… a truck and it was skidding…”
“Yup,” I said.
“I… I died?”
“Yup. But don’t feel bad about it. Everyone dies,” I said.
You looked around. There was nothingness. Just you and me. “What is this place?” You asked. “Is this the afterlife?”
“More or less,” I said.
“Are you god?” You asked.
“Yup,” I replied. “I’m God.”
“My kids… my wife,” you said.
“What about them?”
“Will they be all right?”
“That’s what I like to see,” I said. “You just died and your main concern is for your family. That’s good stuff right there.”
You looked at me with fascination. To you, I didn’t look like God. I just looked like some man. Or possibly a woman. Some vague authority figure, maybe. More of a grammar school teacher than the almighty.
“Don’t worry,” I said. “They’ll be fine. Your kids will remember you as perfect in every way. They didn’t have time to grow contempt for you. Your wife will cry on the outside, but will be secretly relieved. To be fair, your marriage was falling apart. If it’s any consolation, she’ll feel very guilty for feeling relieved.”
“Oh,” you said. “So what happens now? Do I go to heaven or hell or something?”
“Neither,” I said. “You’ll be reincarnated.”
“Ah,” you said. “So the Hindus were right,”
“All religions are right in their own way,” I said. “Walk with me.”
You followed along as we strode through the void. “Where are we going?”
“Nowhere in particular,” I said. “It’s just nice to walk while we talk.”
“So what’s the point, then?” You asked. “When I get reborn, I’ll just be a blank slate, right? A baby. So all my experiences and everything I did in this life won’t matter.”
“Not so!” I said. “You have within you all the knowledge and experiences of all your past lives. You just don’t remember them right now.”
I stopped walking and took you by the shoulders. “Your soul is more magnificent, beautiful, and gigantic than you can possibly imagine. A human mind can only contain a tiny fraction of what you are. It’s like sticking your finger in a glass of water to see if it’s hot or cold. You put a tiny part of yourself into the vessel, and when you bring it back out, you’ve gained all the experiences it had.
“You’ve been in a human for the last 48 years, so you haven’t stretched out yet and felt the rest of your immense consciousness. If we hung out here for long enough, you’d start remembering everything. But there’s no point to doing that between each life.”
“How many times have I been reincarnated, then?”
“Oh lots. Lots and lots. An in to lots of different lives.” I said. “This time around, you’ll be a Chinese peasant girl in 540 AD.”
“Wait, what?” You stammered. “You’re sending me back in time?”
“Well, I guess technically. Time, as you know it, only exists in your universe. Things are different where I come from.”
“Where you come from?” You said.
“Oh sure,” I explained “I come from somewhere. Somewhere else. And there are others like me. I know you’ll want to know what it’s like there, but honestly you wouldn’t understand.”
“Oh,” you said, a little let down. “But wait. If I get reincarnated to other places in time, I could have interacted with myself at some point.”
“Sure. Happens all the time. And with both lives only aware of their own lifespan you don’t even know it’s happening.”
“So what’s the point of it all?”
“Seriously?” I asked. “Seriously? You’re asking me for the meaning of life? Isn’t that a little stereotypical?”
“Well it’s a reasonable question,” you persisted.
I looked you in the eye. “The meaning of life, the reason I made this whole universe, is for you to mature.”
“You mean mankind? You want us to mature?”
“No, just you. I made this whole universe for you. With each new life you grow and mature and become a larger and greater intellect.”
“Just me? What about everyone else?”
“There is no one else,” I said. “In this universe, there’s just you and me.”
You stared blankly at me. “But all the people on earth…”
“All you. Different incarnations of you.”
“Wait. I’m everyone!?”
“Now you’re getting it,” I said, with a congratulatory slap on the back.
“I’m every human being who ever lived?”
“Or who will ever live, yes.”
“I’m Abraham Lincoln?”
“And you’re John Wilkes Booth, too,” I added.
“I’m Hitler?” You said, appalled.
“And you’re the millions he killed.”
“I’m Jesus?”
“And you’re everyone who followed him.”
You fell silent.
“Every time you victimized someone,” I said, “you were victimizing yourself. Every act of kindness you’ve done, you’ve done to yourself. Every happy and sad moment ever experienced by any human was, or will be, experienced by you.”
You thought for a long time.
“Why?” You asked me. “Why do all this?”
“Because someday, you will become like me. Because that’s what you are. You’re one of my kind. You’re my child.”
“Whoa,” you said, incredulous. “You mean I’m a god?”
“No. Not yet. You’re a fetus. You’re still growing. Once you’ve lived every human life throughout all time, you will have grown enough to be born.”
“So the whole universe,” you said, “it’s just…”
“An egg.” I answered. “Now it’s time for you to move on to your next life.”
And I sent you on your way.

reply to post by Nola213


Bravo, standing up

Hello everyone! First time poster / long time lurker. The subject of this thread prompted me to join ATS, finally.

Every since I was a kid through this day (I’m now 36) I’ve had an extreme fear of water. I refused to learn to swim and if I’m in the shower and too much water pours on my face, I panic! I’m convinced that my fear comes from drowning in a previous life. More specifically I think I drowned aboard the Titanic.

No joke. I’ve always had this strange obsession with the Titanic since childhood. As a kid I would draw pictures of the ship breaking apart. I even built a model of the ship and asked my dad to break it into two pieces. This was years before her wreckage was discovered 1985. I’ve always had these intense dreams about the Titanic. The weird thing is they feel more like memories than dreams. Distant memories that are in a fog. I can remember the sounds of the ship like bells and whistles. I can remember the vibration of the ship engines and the motion of the ship, I can feel myself walking the decks of the ship and I can remember having conversations with people while feeling the sun on my skin. The strangest thing is remembering different smells like sea water, wood, fresh paint, food and ice. Then I get a bizarre since of panic, then darkness. I wake up covered in sweat usually.

I've had many past-life memories, most of them spontaneously after a Native American medicine man somehow "raised" my energy. My first one was even collaborated by another person who was with me in that past life.

Here's the story:

In the '90s, I met this woman on a German New Age forum, and it seemed like we had an instant connection (I'm female as well, in case you were wondering). She told me about a Native American camp that was going on in the summer, and I went there, since I always felt a strong affinity to Native Americans. The guy who ran it was a chief of the Crow in Montana, I believe, and also their medicine man. A very powerful individual and one of those "tall, silent" types. He'd never chat just to chat; if he didn't have anything profound to say, he wouldn't say anything. He also didn't normally seek out participants to talk to them but stayed mostly in the background, except for the teachings.

One morning I sat down for breakfast and he came to sit with me (very unusual). He said, "I feel that you have a lot of power, but you seem to keep a lid on it." I agreed, and he put his palms over mine and we just sat there like that a few minutes. Half an hour later I got my period, even though it wasn't my time of the month, and in the days and weeks after, I got a major energy rush that was so overwhelming, I didn't know how to absorb it or what to do with it.

Anyhow, that evening, though, some folks were sitting around a campfire chatting; this woman I knew from the forum, Antara, was sitting next to me. I was feeling a little spaced-out from the energy blast, so I just sat there staring at the flames. All of a sudden I had a very vivid vision of myself as a baby in -- judging from the surroundings and the dress style -- Victorian England. I remember seeing my mother, but only as a fleeting figure in the background; as was common back then, wealthy people usually left the raising of their kids to nannies and tutors.

It was strange: I could see myself lying in a cradle, like in a movie, but at the same time I was looking OUT of the cradle from my baby perspective. I saw a smiling nanny bend over my cradle and look at me, and it was Antara! She wore a simple black dress and a ruffled white apron, with a ruffled white cap on her hair. I loved her so much; she was basically my mother, the one who'd play with me and feed me and take care of me. (That's, by the way, how you can tell a real past-life memory from a day dream -- they're very real and you relive the emotions you felt then, at least to a degree.)

When I came out of the vision, I said to Antara, who was still sitting next to me: "I just had a vision of a past-life as a baby, and you were in it!" She just paused for a minute, closed her eyes, and said, "Yes, didn't I look ridiculous with that ruffled cap?"

I almost fainted. Then the vision came back and I saw myself again -- and again in that dual mode from outside and inside of the cradle. Suddenly something big and fluffy came down on me and darkened my view; I couldn't breathe, and then, in the "outside" view I saw the nanny pressing a big pillow on my face, smothering me. I got really upset and angry. (I know I sounds laughable, but when you're IN the memory, it just sweeps you away.)

I said to Antara, "I just saw how I died. Can you tell me anything about THAT?" She closed her eyes again and said matter-of-factly, "You suffocated." I said, "Yes, and YOU killed me!" I was really pissed; at the same time I felt ridiculous for having a fight with someone about what they did in a past life, so I retreated for the night to my tent.

That night I had a very vivid dream about that past life: I saw more details about my home and surroundings, my parents, the nanny, etc., and I saw myself again in the cradle, being kind of blueish in the face and looking pretty sick. In the dream it turned out that I'd had a severe illness -- the word "typhus" popped into my mind -- and the nanny's deed was actually a mercy killing because I was suffering so much.

I have many other stories; maybe I'll tell them later if I have time.

reply to post by zbeliever


I am who I have always been. The who loves the creator and wars for the creator.

President Lincoln, I still have paranoia when entering a theater. Never once in my life has the memory not surfaced while in a crowed theater. I just relax through it, and then let it go, but before I connected to it, it was like a private unfounded hell.

I have others too, but one is enough.

Good thread. S@F

Originally posted by zbeliever
Who were you?
not who are you...
I have done some thinking on reincarnation...I feel as though I've been here before.Both of my children have made odd comments about lives they have lived before the age of 4(in this life)...My daughter talked about taking care of her father when he was a baby.My son is older and I wish I would have wrote down his comments but I remember thinking Wow were did that come from....

I don't believe I was ever a celebrity or someone of great importance...Just a hard working soul trying to make it...I thought just for fun we could write down what we think we might have been and why...

I think one time I was well of and a tall Blondie woman who died in her 20s in a car crash /due to /a dream.

I feel as though I may have been in the Holocaust/because as a child when it was mentioned in school I would cry and the teachers made me exempt from have to learn about it due to my weakness.Now I am stronger and am able to read and learn of it....

I feel I was a slave/ because equality is so important to me....

I think I'v been a monkey and a ladybug/just because I love them so...

Just for fun who were you and why?

However, I am hard pressed not believing some people were either bugs in their last life or in their first incarnation but of course none of these types are on ATS

I have no clue who I might have been in the past. The only peculiar memory I have is one of a really, really, vivid purple sky. It is so strong in my memory, and it's unlike anything I can recall seeing myself.. it's just a strange memory.

Other than that, I have no idea who I may have been in the past. I'm naturally really good at drumming and have been so since I can remember, so perhaps I may have worked with percussion in the past.

Originally posted by zbeliever
reply to post by hapablab

 

Wow, Mrs. Sinatra good post... Have you had children since his death ?If so can they sing?

Thanks, and thanks for the great thread!!, I have 2 Children born after Mr. Sinatra passed, they are 9 and 6 now and well I don't know about their singing lol, when I tell them to sing they get all goofy lol, but they have a heck of a set of blue eyes!!

reply to post by Ophiuchus 13


I have to tell you , I don't find it against Christians, God ,or Jesus to believe we can be reincarnated...Eternity is along time, don't you think we have to entertain ourselves somehow?Learn lesson here on earth that make us better entity for God.